Compiler? Interpreter? I used to get confused between the two when I was just starting to learn programming. So, I wanted to share the difference between them, in case you're also curious!
Let's begin with source code. Source code is the high-level language we usually program in, like C, C++, Python, and others. Since computers don't understand high-level languages, we need something to translate them into machine language. That's where the compiler and interpreter come in—but what are their key differences?
Compiler
- Translates the entire source code into machine code (low-level code) at once, before executing it.
- Takes the entire program as input.
- Faster execution after compilation.
- Requires more memory space during the compilation process.
- Displays all errors at once after compiling the whole program.
Interpreter
- Translates and executes source code line by line, instruction by instruction.
- Takes one instruction at a time as input.
- Slower execution, since translation happens during runtime.
- Requires less memory space compared to a compiler.
- Displays errors immediately after each instruction is interpreted.
In Summary:
A compiler and an interpreter both have the same job: translating source code (high-level) into machine code (low-level). The main difference is how they do it—either all at once or line by line. There are many different compilers and interpreters out there for various programming languages!
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